More than 18,000 Agniveers from the first batch are set to leave the armed forces by December 31 after completing their four-year tenure under the Agnipath recruitment scheme, shifting the focus to second-career opportunities available to them, officials aware of the matter said on Sunday.
The government has already announced that half of entry-level posts in forces such as BSF, CRPF, CISF, ITBP, and Assam Rifles will be filled by ex-Agniveers. Some states, including Haryana, Rajasthan and Maharashtra, have announced job opportunities for Agniveers in their police forces. Ahead of the upcoming first Agniveers’ release, CAPFs were asked to develop training modules on internal security and law-and-order duties, given that the recruits are trained primarily for warfare.
The coming months will test the government’s ability to resettle Agniveers who will be in the age group of 21-and-a-half to 25, the officials said. They will be eligible for job quotas in the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), state police, Indian Railways, the coast guard and 16 defence public sector undertakings, among other organisations. They draw an annual salary of ₹ 4.76 lakh in the first year of service and ₹ 6.92 lakh in the fourth, get a non-contributory insurance cover of ₹ 48 lakh, and an additional ex-gratia payment of ₹ 44 lakh for death attributable to service. Those being released now will receive ₹ 11.71 lakh as Seva Nidhi severance package, which includes ₹ 5.02 lakh contributed by them during their service.
Agniveers faced a baptism of fire during Operation Sindoor last year, but their performance in the military confrontation with Pakistan, their first brush with conflict, reflected courage, resilience and composure, and helped dispel doubts about the Agnipath scheme.
